So, normally I'm not one for contemporary YA. I like the vamps, the weres, the magic, the dystopia. I don't like "normal" stories. THIS is not a "normSo, normally I'm not one for contemporary YA. I like the vamps, the weres, the magic, the dystopia. I don't like "normal" stories. THIS is not a "normal" story. THIS is a grab-your-heart-outta-your-chest-wrenching story.

The novel goes back and forth between what is happening in the present and flashbacks. Each flashback pertains to a certain person and shows what the relationship between them and Mia was like. I was sad when Mia was sad and happy when Mia was happy. I even googled the classical music selections so that I could feel even MORE like Mia.

I mean, I like music. But I started to LOVE music and how something could bring Adam and Mia together like that. And oh Adam. What an amazing boyfriend. The things that he does for Mia and how much he loves her. I could literally feel it radiating off the pages.

What would you do if you had the choice to live or die? How does one make that choice? Could you stay if you felt there was nothing left for you?

Updated 11/06/2013 Reading #4 - and even though I can recite entire paragraphs from memory, it feels so new and so fresh and so good.

Updated 8/19/201Updated 11/06/2013 Reading #4 - and even though I can recite entire paragraphs from memory, it feels so new and so fresh and so good.

Updated 8/19/2012 A third time reading this and it still destroys me. So, so emotional.

I feel like words are so inadequate to describe the way I felt about this book. A facial expression or some kind of half-squeel half-sob feels more appropriate. But I'll do my best to explain in words how completely and utterly wonderful this book is.

Where She Went is told from Adam's point of view..and boy is he damaged - "battle scars" in his words. Poor guy doesnt even know why Mia left him. My heart ached for Adam half the time and the other half I was seriously pissed at him because he was just acting childish i.e. throwing tantrums and some of the err..activities that he was engaging - ugh, I mean I get it dude..your heart is broken but really?

The story telling method is similar to If I Stay in that it goes back and forth between the present and past. However, alot of the past memories were ones from the relationship between Adam and Mia and it was SO GOOD to see more of their relationship (since Mia's flashbacks weren't just about Adam).

I really connected with Adam, which is weird because I am rarely able to connect with a male character. (It took me more than half of The Maze Runner before I could get into it because it's told from Thomas's perspective.)

Ultimately, Where She Went is about Adam asking himself this one question:

You know that feeling that you get when you have something savory, like say a chocolate chI loved this book. There are no ifs, ands, or buts about it.

You know that feeling that you get when you have something savory, like say a chocolate chip cookie or a piece of chocolate cake, and you want to just enjoy it slowly and appreciate every little morsel and bask in that greatness as long as you can? Yeah, that's what this book is like. I found myself reading the pages slowly and enjoying not only the story of Francesca and her (depressed) family but also the incredible writing style of Melina Marchetta.

This novel is about a girl whose mother, for some reason or another, has become depressed. It's about how Francesca comes to deal with this in her life and how it affects her life and the lives of her entire family. There are lots of things that have changed in her life other than her mother's depression - she now attends what used to be an all-male boarding school (and the boys aren't too happy about the girls being there). And here is where we find something that every teenager goes through - and that is wanting to be accepted. Francesca often conformed to what her friends (and mother) told her that she should be instead of being her own person. And now in this new place, she doesn't know who she is (especially without her mother telling her who to be). Throughout the novel though, Francesca finds her own voice (even if it is yelling at her father).

Lennie Walker has always been the girl in the background; not the one in the spotlight. And she doesn't necessarily get thrown into the spotlight afteLennie Walker has always been the girl in the background; not the one in the spotlight. And she doesn't necessarily get thrown into the spotlight after her older sister, Bailey, dies so much as she just doesn't have anyone to "hide" behind anymore. This is her story of loss, grief, and ultimately acceptance.

This story was exactly what I was needing. It wasn't necessarily a feel-good kind of story but one that touches your heart in so many ways, especially if you have ever lost someone with whom you were close. The feelings and thoughts that Lennie has mirrors so much of what grief is like when someone dies - I mean, it was just so palpable. Then, enter confusion in the form of Bailey's boyfriend. They understand each other's grief but mistake it for..love? Okay, not love but they cling to each other in the hopes of keeping Bailey's memory alive. And really, I just wanted to scream at Lennie and tell her she was being an idiot (because she was). But, you know, she grows throughout this book and she comes to her own kind of nirvana.

Did I have some issues with the story? Yeah, sure. The whole Toby thing was strange, but I could sort of understand it. Did I think that Joe and Lennie get too close, too soon? Yep. But the rest of the story was just so good that I was willing to overlook these small details.

I would recommend this book for fans of Sarah Dessen and especially fans of Gayle Forman's If I Stay and Where She Went....more

Another great work from A.S. King. In Ask the Passengers, we meet Astrid Jones, who is struggling with not only figuring out who she is but also publiAnother great work from A.S. King. In Ask the Passengers, we meet Astrid Jones, who is struggling with not only figuring out who she is but also publicly displaying it. She is falling in love with another girl but doesn’t quite know what to make of it – add in her slightly odd family – and the fact that she lays on a picnic table in her backyard and you’ve got an interesting story!

I LOVE the way the A.S. King writes. (And though she did get a Printz Honor Award for Please Ignore Vera Dietz, I don’t think she gets as much praise as she deserves!) Her writing cuts right to the heart of things for me and when I’m craving something deep and meaningful, I always know that she’ll hit it out of the park. When Astrid sends her “love” up to the people in the planes, I really enjoyed seeing how that affected the people sitting up there. And not only that, but the reader was also given a small bit of background information on them (the passengers) and it took me, as a reader, outside of Astrid’s story without taking me out of the novel and that’s a very tricky line to walk.

Fans of Please Ignore Vera Dietz and Everybody Sees the Ants will enjoy this one for sure. Make sure to read when you’re feeling really angsty! ...more

I can’t believe that I waited so long to get to this book. It absolutely blew me away.

Finley was such a real character; she grieved in more ways thanI can’t believe that I waited so long to get to this book. It absolutely blew me away.

Finley was such a real character; she grieved in more ways than one and with no one to really turn to (especially in a foreign country), she looked for her faith in the landscape of Ireland, where her murdered brother, Will, felt closest to his own faith. She struggled to understand the beauty that Will saw while he studied abroad, and my heart ached for her as she missed the importance and beauty of life in the present. This girl was broken in a way that no one but herself would be able to fix. The pacing for her story was absolutely perfect; nothing ever felt rushed – feelings and relationships developed naturally.

The minor characters of this story were also so clear in my mind – the mother of your closest friend who treats you like one of her own, in this case the host-mom. The best friend who only wants what’s best for you. The mean girl at school. They were “stereotypic” characters written in a way that was unconventionally conventional. What I’m trying to say is that they were written well and weren’t just cookie cutter characters meant to be place holders for real people. The host family of Sean, Nora, Liam, and Erin – with all of their strange quirks (Liam and his legos!) and their quaint family-run Bed and Breakfast made the environment feel warm and cozy. And the setting of Ireland itself whisked me away to a world of accents, stews, and Celtic crosses.

There was also more than one plot going on in this book and each was intricately woven into Finley’s story and gave her such a three-dimensional feel. I didn’t feel jerked back and forth between all of the plots and people, and enjoyed every moment of the book while I was in it yet still itched to find out what happened next in the other plots. It really drove home the point that Finely’s life wasn’t all about ONE thing (a cute boy, acing a final, grieving, finding her faith, etc) but that she had to handle all of these things at the same time, much like real life. And the faith portion of the book was incorporated in a way that didn’t feel “preachy” or overly-religious.

Does the whole “movie star falls for girl-next-door” thing sound cheesy? Perhaps, but don’t pretend like you haven’t enjoyed a story like that before! Besides, this is so much more than that.

My friend, Tatiana, said that she’s wary of contemporary books right now because too many of them are discussing grief and death, and although There You’ll Find Me discusses both of these things, it also focuses on hope.

There You’ll Find Me was a humorous and heartbreaking read. It made me laugh, it made me cry, it made me feel. I highly recommend this book to contemporary lovers, especially if you enjoyed The Fault in Our Stars by John Green or The Piper's Son by Melina Marchetta....more

Oh – my – goodness. I haven’t cried at the end of a book since The Fault in Our Stars by John Green. I mean, WOW. In this historical fiction filled thOh – my – goodness. I haven’t cried at the end of a book since The Fault in Our Stars by John Green. I mean, WOW. In this historical fiction filled thriller, we meet Verity who is writing journal entries while captured by the Gestapo. Now, let me be very clear that it WILL take you more than half of the book to get into this book, but other reviewers and readers are not exaggerating when they say that it will pay off. I, myself, was extremely skeptical – this book that was “meh” for over 50% – how could it possible turn around? BUT IT DID.

This book made me bawl like a baby and all I could think of was MY best friend, who I’m lucky to blog with, and what I would do if it were the two of us in World War II. If you don’t come away from this book thinking about your best friend, I don’t know what to tell you!

What can I say about Code Name Verity that hasn’t already been said? I agree with my friends here:

“Code Name Verity is one of those books that will be seared into my brain and heart” – Jamie

“This novel tells such a beautiful, moving tale of friendship that will be staying with me for a long while.” -Alexa

Please please make the investment in this book – it’s so hard to ask someone to give a book more than 50% when you aren’t really into it but I promise, it will pay out. (I have told the truth!)...more

There are people in the world who have so much potential but just let everything go right down the drain. People who can’t help but make bad choices.There are people in the world who have so much potential but just let everything go right down the drain. People who can’t help but make bad choices. And though they’re witty, kind, and charming – they have issues – they have problems. But they just can’t seem to help themselves. Have you ever known anyone like this? I haven’t and I think that may be why I felt both disconnected and connected with this book and with Sutter Keely. Disconnected in that I genuinely did not understand why he was doing what he was doing. And connected in that my heart ached for him – I wanted him to make the right choices for himself. I can’t recall how many times I wanted to jump into this book and scream at Sutter – tell him how he was going down the wrong path, suggest to him how to get help – that he needed help.

Addiction and substance abuse are scary – but these things real – and there are people out there battling them every day. To watch someone self-destruct is a painful and sad thing I think mostly because there is nothing you can do about it – the person is doing it to themselves. Even when loved ones and friends try to intervene, it doesn’t always work – the person doesn’t always listen. I enjoyed this book because it shows the pain and that sadness that accompany these types of situation. The Spectacular Now reminded me that these people are real and these things are happening to them. I think the saddest thing in the book is that Sutter doesn’t even realize what he’s doing to himself.

Though this book isn’t one I’d recommend to everyone, if you like books with a more serious tone to them, pick this one up....more